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Multiple-Meaning Words

A multiple-meaning word is spelled and said the same way but means different things: a bat flies at night, and you hit a ball with a bat. Context is the only clue, which is why these words are such good reading practice.

Here are 116 multiple-meaning words from past ClueBy puzzles, each with a real example sentence for every meaning. Use them as a reference, or make a printable worksheet below.

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Students read each sentence and write the missing word. Every word appears in several sentences, each time with a different meaning.

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Word bank
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Multiple-Meaning Words

Name: ____________________Date: __________

Write the missing word from the word bank in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

Word bank: track · bowl · trunk · field · mouse · patient · scale · branch

  1. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  2. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  3. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  4. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  5. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  6. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  7. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  8. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  9. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  10. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  11. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  12. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  13. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  14. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  15. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  16. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  17. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  18. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  19. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  20. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  21. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  22. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  23. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  24. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.

Sentences from ClueBy, Tatoeba (CC BY 2.0 FR) and Common Voice (CC0). clueby.com

Answer key

  1. mouse — the animal
  2. field — a subject
  3. bowl — a dish
  4. branch — of a tree
  5. patient — calm and waiting
  6. mouse — for a computer
  7. track — a song
  8. trunk — of an elephant
  9. track — a path
  10. field — farmland
  11. bowl — a football final
  12. field — for sport
  13. branch — of a bank
  14. bowl — to roll
  15. patient — a sick person
  16. mouse — the animal
  17. patient — a sick person
  18. trunk — of a tree
  19. trunk — of a car
  20. branch — a division
  21. scale — in music
  22. scale — for weighing
  23. track — to keep track
  24. scale — size or range

Multiple-meaning words list

Tick up to 10 words to build a worksheet with just those words.

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Frequently asked questions

What are multiple-meaning words?

Words with the same spelling and pronunciation but more than one meaning, like bark (of a dog or of a tree) or bank (for money or of a river). You can only tell which meaning is meant from the rest of the sentence.

Are multiple-meaning words the same as homonyms?

Mostly, yes. Teachers often use "multiple-meaning words" and "homonyms" for the same idea. Homophones are different: they sound alike but are spelled differently, like flour and flower.

Are the worksheets free?

Yes. Make and print as many as you like for home or classroom use. Each sheet has its own link, so you can print the same one again.

Where do the words come from?

From past ClueBy puzzles, a daily game where you sort twelve sentences by their missing word. A new puzzle every day adds four more words to this list.

Sentences from ClueBy, Tatoeba (CC BY 2.0 FR) and Common Voice (CC0). clueby.com